Chapter 12: You'll regret that Colonel
Expecting Vulture, Sheppard was surprised when instead another man walked into the room. Where Vulture hadn't looked the part of a kidnapper this man certainly did, even dressed in a black suit similar to his boss. The sneer on his face and his general air of arrogance gave John an idea as to his identity.
"Snake I presume," he said lightly. "Where's Vulture?"
"Let's just say his talk with Ma'at didn't go exactly as planned," Snake retorted, clearly amused. "His faith has been ... shaken. Fool."
"So ... not a believer then?" John asked blandly.
"The 'true path'?" Snake laughed harshly. "Come now Colonel. You and I both know there is no such thing. My employers however do believe in the potential of the Aperio program."
"I thought you said you didn't know what that device did," John reminded the other man of what he'd said back at the Stargate what seemed like days ago now.
"I lied," Snake laughed again, amused this time. "My employers knew precisely what Aperio was. It's potential. The secrets it can unlock. Particularly those of the Ancient outpost only a few miles from our current location. That is why I'm here. With Aperio working for them, Vulture's order held potential to gain power," Snake didn't seem to mind explaining. "Power that would see the balance shift amongst those organisations opposed to military dominance over the Stargate and Atlantis. I was sent to infiltrate." He smirked cruely. "Vulture is so trusting ... so willing to believe that others will want to lead their lives as he does. It was too easy for me to become one of his order, to rise up the ranks until I was in a position to keep an eye on things and report back to my leaders."
"Let me guess," Sheppard intoned blandly, nothing of his thoughts visible in his expression although his interest had sharpened abruptly at the other man's words. "You want to control the weapons platform and you think Aperio can help you with that." He laughed suddenly. "You're just as big a fool as Vulture if you believe Aperio will serve any agenda but her own."
"There is more to be controlled in Antarctica than a weapon's platform low on ammunition," Snake smirked.
"Such as?" John's eyes narrowed as he considered what Snake was implying.
"You'll find out ... when you help us by using that neat little gene you were born with," Snake didn't let himself be drawn into revealing more.
"You should know that I have no intention of helping you with anything," John shot back. "Vulture seems halfway to being decent and I wouldn't help him ... there's no way I'd help a piece of shit like you. Go back to your bosses and tell them to send someone a hell of a lot more intimidating that you," he challenged.
"You'll regret that Colonel," insulted, Snake rushed forward, slamming Sheppard against the wall forcefully.
Even though the breath rushed from his lungs, John had been ready for that. He'd counted on Snake underestimating him because up until that point he'd done nothing threatening against his captors. He'd banked on them unconsciously believing he'd failed to attempt an escape because he wasn't capable. And it had worked. Snake had gotten close – too close – creating just the opportunity John had been hoping for.
Grabbing the other man by the throat Sheppard spun and returned the favour, slamming Snake up against the wall, holding him there, his expression grim and purposeful.
"I don't think so," Sheppard retorted, his forearm pressing into Snake's throat such that he could barely breathe. Searching the other man he grinned when his fingers brushed cold metal. Pulling out the gun – an M60 that could have been John's own weapon – and stepping back abruptly he pointed it to Snake's chest. Watching silently as Snake slumped against the wall, breathing hard, John waited until the other man looked up. "Now, you're going to help me get out of here."
"Why ... would I help you?" Snake got out, his voice hoarse and uneven. Straightening, he rubbed a hand to his throat, grimacing in pain.
"Because if you don't I'll shoot you," Sheppard replied almost conversationally.
"And bring the rest of my men down on you?" Snake attempted a confident smile that John just wasn't buying.
"Nice try," he laughed. "I'm gonna go with my gut on this one though ... this place feels deserted to me. It's just you, Ninja guy and one other, right?"
"Believe what you will Colonel," Snake shot back. "I won't help you."
"Fine," without warning Sheppard pulled the trigger, the bullet finding its mark with precision.
Snake fell to the floor with a strangled yell of pain, clutching his shoulder, hand already red with his own blood. Not waiting, John strode forward and clocked him over the head with the butt of the gun, abruptly silencing him.
Pausing for a moment Sheppard closed his eyes and tried to find that tingle of Atlantis inside his mind again but it was no use ... there was nothing there even though he was sure he had sensed the city. So it was back to it being up to him for the time being.
"Okay then, let's see what we've got," John muttered, moving quickly to the door. Opening it cautiously he peered out. Seeing nothing he shifted into the corridor, keeping close to the wall. At every turn he expected to run into opposition but none eventuated.
That was all well and good but he didn't know where he was going and it wasn't like he could just walk outside and make his way to the outpost. He knew Antarctica – had served there for months before that fateful flight with General O'Neill four years before. Depending on the conditions outside even a few minutes of exposure to the elements could be fatal without the right clothing. Sheppard couldn't see any other option but to head for the Ancient outpost, trusting that Snake had spoken true when he'd said it was only a few miles away. But before he could do that he needed the appropriate attire and a whole lot of luck.
There were closed doors every few paces ... trying the first and finding it opened, John looked inside. A room much like the one he'd woken up in ... a bed, stripped bare and nothing else. Closing the door he moved on to the next one, repeating the process twice more before he found a larger room containing a row of storage lockers.
Entering the room he closed the door behind him before silently moving to the first locker. The good news was that it wasn't locked. The bad news was that it contained only a few boxes of office supplies – nothing useful. The same proved true for the other lockers.
"Damn it," John slammed a palm against the last locker, frustrated. He'd been hoping he wouldn't have to confront anyone else but it wasn't looking promsing.
Exiting the room he turned to head back the way he'd come, intent on searching the other side of the building. Turning the first corner he halted abruptly.
"Colonel Sheppard," Vulture stood in the corridor as though he'd been waiting for him.
Raising the gun, John moved forward. "Where do you keep the cold weather gear?" he demanded, straight to the point.
"It will do you no good," Vulture said sadly. "There is nowhere you can go ... nowhere any of us can go." Turning away, Vulture looked down the corridor and back to John, his expression uncertain. "You were right Colonel," he admitted. "I have given my service to a false Goddess ... done things in her name that sicken me. There is no salvation ... no true path."
"Listen, you can have your little religious breakdown later," Sheppard said, not unkindly. "You help me get out of here and I promise to end Aperio once and for all."
"It will not matter," Vulture persisted.
"It will," John grabbed the man's shoulder and shook him. "Maybe you believed in the crap she was spinning but Snake works for people who knew exactly what she was. We can't leave her operational. I don't know exactly what she could do if they plug her into a system that isn't isolated like here – but it won't be good. There's nothing hidden at the Ancient outpost that'll justify the damage she could do." He paused, waiting for Vulture to meet his gaze. "You can get some of what she's taken from you back ... if you help me."
Vulture blinked, hesitated and then seemed to come back to himself. "You're right," he nodded. "This way."
Moving quickly, Vulture led John past where he'd been held captive to a door that looked like all the others. This one didn't lead to a room as such, but rather to an antechamber one step away from the outside. Sheppard could see through the small window in the opposite door ... the wind was swirling ice against the glass and the light was less than inspiring.
"Here," John turned from his contemplation of the external conditions to see Vulture holding out a jacket for him.
Taking it wordlessly, Sheppard pulled it on, zipping it up all the way to his chin. Gloves, hat, scarf, ski goggles and boots all followed until he was as rugged up as he could be.
Vulture pulled open the external door. The temperature in the antechamber dropped immediately even as the noise level picked up. Wind and ice hitting against the walls in a way that said 'stay inside, for god's sake!'. Not an option for Sheppard.
"There," Vulture pointed to their right where John could just make out a large building, shouting to make himself heard above the weather. "That's the warehouse where the Stargate is housed." Closing the door again Vulture brushed ice from his hair, turning back to Sheppard. "Unfortunately we cannot dial out without Ma'at," he paused, swallowed and then continued, "without Aperio stopping us. But if you head past the warehouse and keep going, eventually you'll arrive at the Ancient outpost. If the elements don't defeat you first."
"Let me worry about that," Sheppard replied confidently. He looked at Vulture for a moment. "You could come with me," he suggested lightly.
"No," Vulture intoned. "I will stay and face my fate ... it is what I deserve for my actions. You were right Colonel. No true God would support so easy a path for their followers. I should not have let myself be blinded by temptation."
Sheppard nodded, knowing there was no point in arguing. Gathering himself, checking to make sure he had no unnecessary skin exposed, he turned back to the door. Hand on the handle he stopped. "You know, at the heart of it, what you wanted isn't necessarily a bad thing," he said. "You just needed to go about it in a different way."
"Perhaps," Vulture agreed. "Good luck Colonel. I will do what I can to deter pursuit."
"Thanks," John raised a gloved hand in a casual wave before opening the door and stepping quickly into the elements.
Even through his cold weather gear he could feel the extreme cold trying to get in. In still air, dressed as he was, John would have been able to maintain his core temperature for some time. The wind chill factor was the real killer ... moving air increased the rate of heat loss from the human body and made it seem as though the temperature were a lot lower than the thermometer would read. Without the gear even a few seconds of exposure under current conditions would have been enough to put him at serious risk. As it was he couldn't afford to delay.
Pushing forward, Sheppard headed for the edge of the warehouse. Visibility was poor – he could see little beyond the large structure. It was hard going fighting the unseen force of the wind determined to keep him where he was. Eventually he made it to the warehouse, using the wall to provide a bit of support as he continued forward.
Leaving the structures behind, soon it was as though John were enclosed in a world with room only for him. He could see little and hear even less above the ice and wind and was going on instinct alone in terms of maintaining his direction. His energy levels were flagging within minutes – he'd been held at the facility for a few days with little food so his reserves were low to begin with. Determination, the core Sheppard that never let him give up, fuelled him to keep going.
Time passed and slowly progress was made. He had no idea how long he'd been out there or how long he had left to go. He'd fallen into a state where his sole purpose was the placement of one foot in front of the other. Left, then right, then left again. Over and over and over.
And then it happened.
There was no warning. One moment he was taking a step, the next he was falling through the ice with nothing to impede his descent.
oOo
"Sheppard's on Earth," Rodney spoke first, his tone urgent. "We have to go get him ... right now!"
"And where exactly would you go McKay?" General O'Neill asked pointedly, his meaning carrying clearly even all the way from Washington. "This is a big planet, in case you've forgotten."
"Did you pick up anything about John's location?" Lorne thought at Atlantis evan as Rodney continued to argue for returning to Earth.
"Nothing specific," the tones of the city shifted in frustration. Lorne was about to speak when Atlantis stopped him. "Coldness," it offered uncertainly.
"There are plenty of places that fit that description," Lorne returned apologetically. "We need more."
"That is all we were able to pick up. We can search for more as long as the Stargate remains active," Atlantis reminded him.
"I can ah ... keep searching with the amplifier, Sir," Evan spoke up, stopping Rodney mid tirade. "Try to get a better idea of where to start."
"We've still got," Rodney glanced at his watch, "about 25 minutes before the wormhole shuts down. That should be enough."
"Okay - you give us something concrete Major and I'll send through a team," Landry promised.
"Thank you Sir," Lorne shot Rodney a pointed look, reminding him wordlessly that they were skirting the edges of a disclosure disaster here. If Lorne managed to get a starting point they'd still do better with Atlantis to guide them and narrow their search. Which meant Evan needed Rodney to be the one at the other end of the line on Earth. There was no way he'd be able to explain what he was doing otherwise. Justifying why John's team had to travel all the way from Atlantis rather than sending someone already on Earth was going to be more than a little difficult.
"I'll handle it," Rodney promised in a low tone, motioning for Evan to keep going.
"Right," Lorne muttered. "You'll handle it." Closing his eyes, he focussed on his connection to Atlantis through the amplifier. "So ... coldness?" he asked Atlantis.
"Yes," the chorus agreed. "We do not wish to cause you pain Evan but the connection to John was very weak. With your permission we will strengthen our access to the amplifier to our maximum in the hopes of picking up John's presence again. If we can establish a connection John may be able to tell us exactly where he is."
"So this is gonna hurt more than it did before," Lorne stated. Before Atlantis could reply he gave a mental shrug. "Don't worry about it ... just find Colonel Sheppard."
"Very well," Atlantis caressed his mind with a regretful note. And then the pressure in Evan's head ramped up abruptly and he had to resist the urge to take his hands from the chair controls. Groaning audibly, he struggled to stay with it, praying that Atlantis would be quick ... that John was listening.
Authors Note:
Another chapter .. finally ... and some Sheppard action. Go John! Hope you enjoy ... thanks for reading!